


Older Brother

by RikiBotic



Category: Lego Ninjago
Genre: Episode: s04e11 Child's Play, Gen, One Shot, Pure Wholesome Fun, Short & Sweet, Sibling Bonding, Sibling Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-20
Updated: 2020-01-20
Packaged: 2021-02-27 07:34:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 939
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22323406
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RikiBotic/pseuds/RikiBotic
Summary: Sure he's a little bit of a rascal but he takes care of his older brothers all the same.Takes place before Child's Play.
Relationships: Cole & Lloyd Garmadon & Kai & Nya & Jay Walker & Zane, Everyone & Everyone
Comments: 6
Kudos: 162





	Older Brother

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Little Brother](https://archiveofourown.org/works/22261093) by [SummerStormFlower](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SummerStormFlower/pseuds/SummerStormFlower). 



He wasn’t totally sure what woke him up, the wind’s chill or the loud pacing coming from the kitchen. 

The soft sound of the blanket trailing behind Lloyd was drowned out by heavy footsteps going back and forth and back and forth. He pulled the fabric taut around his head. Peeking around the door frame, he was met with an anxious Kai. Lloyd could see his hand reach for a green bottle before returning to his lips and being bitten raw. It’d been routine since Nya had gone missing a few nights prior. 

“Kai?” Lloyd mumbled, too tired to speak properly, and walked towards the older. “What are you doing?”

Kai shook his head, “Nothing shorty. Go back to bed.” He wrapped his hand around the bottle, tossing it into the trash. The sound of glass shattering and a sterile smell filled the room. Unnerved, Kai sat and slammed his head down on the table. 

Lloyd stumbled to his side. Kai had always been pleasantly warm, probably because of his powers, and the night was cold. If he was going to go around waking up kids with his worry, he’d better be willing to help them back to sleep. Curling up into the older’s side, Lloyd held his blanket tightly and snuggled into the red gi. 

By the time Kai raised his head, the tiny blond was already asleep in his lap and soon he would be too.

-

When he imagined robots, he thought of towering terminators hellbent on destroying the world. But whenever he saw Zane, he wondered how someone without a mother could be so much like one.

Lloyd sat on the counter, watching Zane scrub the dishes from the morning’s meal. The others had left to see Cole’s father perform in the city, much to Lloyd’s distaste, leaving him with the only one who could handle his displeasure. 

Wu pushed that responsibility onto Zane.

“Zane?” Lloyd kicked his feet, hopping off the counter. “Can I go play outside?”

“We are in the sky.” The harsh clack of ceramic resounded in the air. “You will fall.”

“I won’t.” The child pouted. 

“You will.” Zane coughed into his palm, quickly washing his hands only to be interrupted by another fit. “Stay- Stay inside.” His words were broken by coughs.

Lloyd climbed back onto the counter, standing on his tiptoes to reach the top shelf. Without words, he clumsily poured thick, cherry-flavored medicine into a wet spoon. Carefully, he held it to Zane’s mouth.

“What’s this?” Lloyd gave Zane a flat stare.

“Cough medicine.”

“It’s the children’s kind-” He was interpreted by a spoon forcing its way into his mouth. 

“You can’t complain if you’re sick.”

-

Lloyd hated hearing vulnerability in any of his brothers’ voices, but he especially hated it in Jay’s voice. There was something so gruesome about hearing it in his usually high, peppy voice.

“Jay,” He pounded the door, knowing it’d be the only way to overpower the crying. “Kai said to stop crying about his sister.”

“I’ll make him shut up if I have to!”

“Jay, she just went for a walk.” For some reason that only made the sobs louder. Geez, you would’ve thought this was their first fight.

(Lloyd, who’d grown up seeing his own parents fight, only saw these as minor inconveniences. Civil disputes if anything.)

Testing the doorknob, he checked to make sure the hall was clear before slipping into their shared room. Seeing Jay hiding under his blankets, pillow wet with fresh tears, it was disgusting yet it pulled at his heart all the same. He poked the bundle of sadness. 

Jay stuck his head out, “What do you want?”

“Kai said to shut up.” Jay scrunched up his face as he returned to his cacoon. “Please.” 

Without a response, Lloyd crawled on top of the mattress. Jay sat up and pulled the kid into his lap, resting his chin atop his head.

“Can you also turn off the breakup songs? She’s not even mad.”

-

Training rooms were inherently gross; an enclosed space with four sweaty teenagers crossing metal weapons,  _ no thank you. _

Dance studios, as Lloyd had come to learn, were thousands of times worse. 

As a charity event, the ninja had agreed to perform a song for a televised concert. The problem was that a popular vote was taken to determine the song and it ended up being a hard dance piece by a popular idol group. Cole being the only one with dance history was left to fulfill the request.

Suddenly, he had to modify a dance meant for four people into one for one from a genre he’d never studied and learn it in a week. It didn’t take an expert to see how stressed he was. At least training never involved mental breakdowns.

Lloyd carried a tray of ice water into the practice room, setting it beside Cole who was a panting mess on the floor. He didn’t have time to straighten before Cole dumped a full glass over his head. The blond avoided the spill when he circled Cole, making sure he was still alive. A camera by the full-length mirror caught his eye. Upon closer inspection, it had been recording Cole’s last few runs. 

“This is pretty good.” He mumbled, moving his head to the music. Cole gave him a pat on the head, still panting like a dog on the floor. “You should teach me.”

“What am I? Your teacher?”

Lloyd looked over his shoulder with a frown, “Well you’re my brother aren’t you?”

Cole huffed through a smile, patting the younger’s head again (to his disgust). “When you’re older then.”

**Author's Note:**

> cole doing idol dances and kai being a soft bro are things i think about a lot.


End file.
